Current-rectifier.



PATENTED DEC. 6, 1904.

P. H'. THOMAS.

CURRENT RECTIFIER.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 4. 1903. RENEWED MAY 5. 1904.

2 smug-5112M 1.

N0 MODEL.

lm/mior Winesses: 321% 4 PATENTED DEC. 6, 190 1.

GURRENT RECTIFIER.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 4, 190a. RENEWED MAY 5, 1904.

2 SHEETSSHBET 2.

N0 MODEL.

5140040601, 4-4, '7; ask jZZZHQAJ M q vibvwoow Patented December 6,1904.

ATET rrrcE.

PERCY H. THOMAS, OE PITTSBURG. PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO COOPER HEWITTELECTRIC COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

CURRENT-RECTIFIER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 776,563, dated December6, 190 1.

Application filed February 4, 1903. Renewed May 5, 1904. Serial No-206.576. (No model.)

To all whom, it 777/61, concern:

Be it known that I, PERCY H. THOMAS, a citizen of the United States,anda resident of Pittsburg, county of Allegheny, State of Pennsyl- 5.Vania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inCurrent-Rectifiers, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to devices for obtaining a flow of current in agiven direction from I alternating electromotive forces.

In its physical embodiment the device herein. described consists, ingeneral, of an inclosing chamber containing a gas or vapor and separatedelectrodes, one or both usually consisting of mercury.Whenproperlyconstructed and operated, a current may be caused to pass inone direction only through such a device, the device opposing so greatresistance to flow of current in the opposite direction as topractically prohibit such flow.

The particular subject of this invention is a novel form andconstruction of such a device, the object being to provide means forkeeping the device cool, maintaining the proper 5 purity and density ofthe gas or vapor Within the chamber, and adapting it to transmitcurrents of large quantity.

In carrying out my invention I provide means for conducting a largeamount of our- 3 rent into and from the device with relatively smallresistance and also means for carrying away from the chamber heatgenerated therein and for withdrawing from the chamber any excess ofvapor and maintaining the vapor in the proper condition. Among the meansemployed for these purposes are tubular extensions of the main body ofthe container, these extensions being filled wholly or partially withmercury if that be the substance of either or 4 all of the electrodes.The lower ends of the tubes are open and are dipped into vesselscontaining mercury, the mercury columns inside the tubes being sustainedby atmospheric pressure or, in case of need, by higher pressure, as

will be explained farther on. I also provide a pump of suitable form forcausing the circulation by positive means of mercury into and out of themain chamber. In this way a circulation of the mercury within thechamber is obtained. 5o

During the process of circulation the mercury may be cooled byartificial means, as by one or more refrigerating-coils placed at aproper point or points in the cycle, or I may accomplish the coolingelfect by causing the mercury to enter or reenter the chamber in theform of spray. These two means may, if desired, be combined, or othercooling devices may be employed.

The invention will be described more par- 6o ticularly in connectionwith the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a vertical sectionshowing one form of apparatus, and Figs. 2 and 3 illustratemodifications.

Referring to the first figure of the drawings,

1 represents the inclosing chamber containing a suitable gas or vapor,which for convenience will be referred to as a mercury-vapor. This isprovided with two tubular extensions 2 and 4, containing columns ofmercury, which constitute, respectively, the positive and negativeterminals of the device. The tubes are here represented as being filledwith mercury and as terminating in vessels 5 and 6, respectively, inwhich vessels mercury is contained. The lower ends of the tubes 2 and 4are open, and the mercury columns are sustained within them byatmospheric pressure. The chamber is provided with a third tube 3, whichterminates in a vessel 7, also containing mercury. The vessel 7 isconnected by a pipe 8 with any suitable form of pump 9, the outlet ofwhich is connected by a pipe 10 with the bottom of the vessel 5.

In operation current is led from a conductor 11 into the mercury in thevessel 5, then passes up the mercury column contained in the tube 2,through the vapor in the chamber 1, to the column contained in the tube4, 9 thence to the vessel 6, and out by way of the conductor 12.Inasmuch as more or less heat will be developed in the passage ofcurrent through the device, it is found convenient to cause a moreor'less continuous flow of mercury upward through the tube 2 into thechamber, from whence it flows downward through the tube 3, carrying withit more or less of the gas or vapor contained within the chamber. Suchcontinuous flow will not only result in providing cool mercury for thepositive terminal of the device, but will continually act as a pump formaintaining the requisite density and purity on the part of the vapor inthe chamber. The mercury as it falls into the vessel 7 is withdrawn,preferably from the bottom of the vessel, so as to be free from air, byway of the pipe 8, through the pump 9, and returned to the vessel 5. Thevessel 7 may be so constructed as to afford a considerableheat-radiating surface to the mercury, and, moreover, there may be addeda cooling-pipe 13 for circulating water or other cooling fluid. Thesurface of the mercury in the vessel 5 is so adjusted with reference tothe tube 2 that the barometric height of the column of mercury in thetube 2 will bring the top of the column at the proper point forpermitting the gradual flow of mercury from the depression in thechamber at the top of the tube over into the depression in which thetube 3 terminates.

It is generally found unnecessary to cool the negative terminal, as insome instances the device operates better while the negative terminal ishot; but, if desired, a like device may be employed in connection withthe negative terminal.

There will always be more or less condensation of the mercury-vapor uponthe walls of the vessel, and the presence of the cold body of mercurycontributes to this action, which results in keeping the vapor at itsproper density.

It should be observed that the pipe 3 should be of such length that thebarometric pressure will leave its upper surface at a considerabledistance below the body of the vessel 1, so as to better insure thepumping action of the mercury-flow. Moreover, by virtue of such anarrangement the mercury passing into the top of the chamber 3 will atfirst be present in the form of drops, which will carry more or less ofthe vapor from the chamber 1 down through the column in the tube 3 by anaction similar to that of a Sprengel pump.

I show in Fig. 2 a construction in which the tubes 2 and I are dispensedwith and the leadwires connected directly with the positive and negativeterminals 2 and 3 in the chamber 1. The tube 3 is present, as before,and the vessel 7 is connected, through a pumping device similar to thatalready described, with a vessel 14. From this vessel I branch two pipesor tubes 15 and 16, which are led into opposite ends of the chamber 1and terminate in nozzles 17 and 18, respectively, through which themercury which is forced through these pipes by atmospheric pressurepasses into the chamber in the form of finely-divided spray.

By these means not only are the terminals themselves cooled, but alsothe conducting vapor within the chamber 1.

It may be found desirable for special purposes to maintain theconducting gas or vapor in the container at a very high pressure, inwhich case the atmospheric pressure exerted upon the outer terminals ofthe mercury columns might be insuflicient to maintain the inner ends ofsuch columns in operative relation with the conducting gas or vapor.Under such conditions an excess pressure may be applied to the outerterminals of the mercury columns, as by extending the said columns overinto the other side or leg of a U- shaped tube, thus adding to theatmospheric pressure the weight of a part of the mercury column. Themain thing to be obtained is that the column of conducting fluid,whatever the nature of the fluid is, may serve as a balance between theexternal and the internal pressures. This arrangement is illustrated inFig. 3, where the tubes 2 and I are represented with extensions whichreturn in such a manner as to form U-shaped tubes in which mercury iscontained. In this case it is assumed that the conducting gas or vaporin the chamber 1 is under high pressure, and to compensate for suchexcessive pressure the weight of the mercury above the limit ofatmospheric pressure is increased by the weight of the mercury in theouter sides of the tubes.

It will be observed that in Fig. 3 the exittube 3 is dispensed with andthe pump is applied to the outer terminals of the tubes 2 and 4. Inorder to secure a good cooling effect, I may surround the tube 8 with awaterjacket 20.

Manifestly the term extension or extensions as used in thisspecification does not necessarily mean tubes formed in one piece withthe chamber or formed on the chamber. Such extensions may be tubessecured in the walls of the chamber by any means which will preventleakage. Obviously, also, one tube may be arranged within another so asto leave an annular space outside the inner tube, the conducting fluidforming one electrode being contained in one of the tubes and theoverflow taking place in the other tube.

So far as the cooling and purifying of the vapor is concerned the liquidwhich is circulated need not be a conducting liquid, and it is not myintention to limit the present invention to the employment of conductingliquids only.

Inadivisional application filed May 6, 1903, Serial No. 155,925, claimsare made upon the apparatus described herein.

I claim as my invention-- 1. The method of regulating the density andpurity of the gas or vapor in the chamber of a gas or vapor electricapparatus in which one or more of the electrodes is composed wholly orin part of a conducting fluid, which consists in circulating through thechamber a portion of the conducting fluid.

2. The method of regulating the density, purity and temperature of thegas or vapor in the chamber of a gas or vapor electric apparatus havingone or more of its electrodes composed wholly or in part of a conductingfluid, which consists in passing a portion of the conducting fluidthrough a circuit including the chamber, and also including a portionwhich is exposed to the atmosphere or other heat absorbent.

3. The method of regulating the density and purity of the gas or vaporin the chamber of a gas or vapor electric apparatus, which consists incirculating through the chamber a suitable liquid.

4. The method of regulating the density, purity and temperature of thegas or vapor in the chamber of a gas or vapor electric apparatus, whichconsists in circulating through the chamber a suitable cooling liquid.

5. The method of regulating the density, purity and temperature of thegas or vapor in the chamber of a gas or vapor electric apparatus, whichconsists in circulating through the chamber a heat-absorbent body andwithdrawing a portion of the gas or vapor.

ture of the gas or vapor in the chamber of a gas or vapor electricapparatus, which consists in circulating through the chamber aheat-absorbent body.

7. The method of regulating the density and purity of the gas or vaporin the chamber of a gas or vapor electric apparatus, which consists incirculating through the chamber a suitable body and withdrawing aportion of the gas or vapor.

8. The method of operating electric apparatus comprising electrodes, aninclosingchamher, and a gas or vapor path therein, which consists inproviding connections with one'or more of the electrodes by barometrictubes, and supplying fluid-conducting material to the electrodes throughbarometric pressure.

Signed at New York, in the county of New York and State of New York,this 2d day of February, A. D. 1903.

PERCY H. THOMAS.

Witnesses:

WM. H. OArnL, GEORGE H. STOCKTON, J r.

6. The method of regulating the tempera-

